The Nevada Appeal's "Silver Dollar" and "Wooden Nickel" feature recognizes positive achievements from the capital region and, when warranted, points out others that missed the mark.
Silver Dollar: To 8-year-old Bethanney Winder, who started a baby sock drive in honor of her twin sister, Faith, who died just before her first birthday. Bethanney launched the Tiny Toes Sock Drive last year at her school, Mark Twain Elementary, and has taken it district-wide this year as a contest among schools. The winner was Mark Twain Elementary, which collected 278 pairs. The grand total from all the schools was 1,155 pairs that will be distributed at area hospitals.
Silver Dollar: To Armand Arnett of Dayton, 86, of Dayton, for receiving national recognition for his volunteer work. Arnett is Nevada's recipient of the Jefferson Award, and is invited to the ceremony in Washington, D.C., this month. Unfortunately, family health concerns prevent him from attending. Arnett has made it his personal mission for the past 24 years to help care for the graves at the Dayton Cemetery. It's a long-overdue recognition for someone who has spent decades volunteering in Northern Nevada.
Wooden nickel: To the computer error that caused a delay in jobless benefits for about 100,000 Nevadans. Being unemployed is stressful enough; that heart-skipping moment when they realized the money wasn't in their account must've added immeasurable aggravation.
Silver Dollar: To the volunteers working with Partnership Carson City and the Juvenile Probation department's Youth Accountability, Directions and Alternatives Team. Kathy Bartosz, Partnership Carson City director, said YADA's mission is to "send a message to youth who are committing these entry-levels types of crimes in our community that it's not acceptable," and help them understand the consequences of their actions before they get in too deep. Let's hope it helps the teen offenders get back on the right track.